AMISH

The United States as a country has a dominant culture that is composed of widely accepted values and norms from all different scopes of the world. These values and norms are observed and respected by the masses. Within the main culture of the United States there are also groups known as subcultures. A subculture is a culture within a broader mainstream culture, with its own separate values, practices, and beliefs. In sociology, the concept of subculture explains the behavior of some social groups. The differences between some subcultures may not be as distinguishable from the dominant culture as others are due to the many similarities they may share. A subculture that is present in the United States whose values, practices and beliefs are very different from that of the dominant culture is that of the Amish.
The Amish is a subculture as well as a religious sect whose values, practices and beliefs existed long before its introduction to the United States. Amish origin can be traced back to the sixteenth century and the Amish are direct descendants of the Antabtists, later known as Mennonites, a group that challenged the reforms during the Protestant Reformation. Considered outcasts, the Mennonites favored baptism by choice as adults and also educated its people about the separation between church and state, a concept that was widely unaccepted at the time. A large group of them fled to Switzerland and rural areas in Europe in order to escape religious persecution. Following the escape, in the late 1600’s, a devoted group lead by a man named Jacob Ammann separated themselves from the Mennonites due to their frustration over the treatment of members who were disobedient or negligent and were not being excommunicated. The group lead by Jacob Ammann became known as the Amish. Although the Amish and the Mennonites shares very similar beliefs, one thing that sets the Amish apart is their preference in dress and their style of worship. Around 1730, the first